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Lion. The most majestic of carnivorous quadrupeds. It is, when mature, of a nearly uniform tawny or yellowish color, paler on the under parts, the young alone exhibiting markings like those common in the Felidae. The male has usually a great shaggy and flowing mane, and the tail, which is quite long, terminates in a tuft of hair. The whole frame is extremely muscular, and the fore parts, in particular, are remarkably powerful, giving, with the large head, bright, flashing eye, and copious mane, a noble appearance to the animal, which, with its strength, has led to its being called the "king of beasts". A lion of the largest size measures about nine feet six inches from the nose to the tip of the tail. The lioness is smaller, has no mane, and is of a lighter color on the under parts. The strength of the lion is such that he can carry off a man as a cat carries a rat. The lion is chiefly an inhabitant of Africa, although it is found also in some of the wilds of Asia, particularly in certain parts of Arabia, Persia, and India. It was anciently much more common in Asia, and was found in some parts of Europe, particularly in Macedonia and Thrace, according to Herodotus and other authors. The lion is not, in general, an inhabitant of deep forests, but rather of open plains in which the shelter of occasional bushes and thickets may be found. He is easily tamed, at least when taken young and when abundantly supplied with food. Lions were made to contribute to the barbarous sports of the ancient Romans; a combat of lions was an attractive spectacle, and vast numbers wcre imported into Rome, chiefly from Africa, for the supply of the amphitheater. Pompey exhibited 600 at once. The mane of the lion and the tuft at the end of the tail are not fully developcd until he is six or seven years old. There are several varieties of the lion, slightly differing from each other in form and color, but particularly in the development of the mane. The largest lions of the south of Africa are remarkable for the size of the head and the great black mane.